Is Kevin Hogan a graduate transfer candidate for Texas, Michigan or Maryland?

Call it the new market inefficiency in college football. If you can't recruit a quarterback, you can always wait until one transfers.

But would Kevin Hogan - the same guy who's won 25 games and a Rose Bowl for the Cardinal - consider transferring from Stanford?

There's some rumblings across the college football world that Hogan is indeed looking to take his talents elsewhere. That's what Sports Illustrated suggested after the Foster Farms Bowl, where Hogan's MVP performance was followed up with the headline: "Stanford routs Maryland, possibly ending Kevin Hogan's complex career"

Now, that theory has taken legs. Take Harvard football play-by-by broadcaster Scott Sudikoff, who suggests Maryland might be in play for Hogan:

Source in San Fran says that there's chatter RE: Stanford QB Kevin Hogan possibly transferring to Maryland to play a graduate year in 2015.

— Scott Sudikoff (@Sudikoff) January 1, 2015

Or the frenetic chatter of Michigan fans on MGoBlog:

Or jump over to SB Nation's Texas Longhorns blog, where the inimitable Scipio Tex posits that Hogan could transfer to Texas in the article "The 2015 Transfer QB Lottery: The Candidates."

Here's the key paragraph (emphasis mine):

While he hasn't yet announced formally for transfer, the Stanford graduate clashed with David Shaw over his conservative offense and had the unenviable task of replacing Andrew Luck - arguably the most gifted QB walking the planet. The rumor mill is running hard and fast that he wants out and would like a show case for his wares. While imperfect - and possessing a slow release that Shaun Watson could help him with - Hogan is a proven competitor with good athletic ability and a live arm. He has 48 touchdowns to 21 career interceptions, won a Rose Bowl, started 30+ games and has a career QB rating around 145. Yet people treat him as if he's chopped liver. He's not.

Now this is ground where the transfer rumors find some purchase to my ears and eyes.

Hogan has been dismissive when discussing his future this season, but most of those questions have been NFL-oriented. So perhaps Hogan is sick of the coaching staff and offense at Stanford and wants a chance to work with some new college coaches in order to try and grow his pro potential.

David Shaw did assure the media that Hogan would be the starter in 2015 if he returns, but perhaps that was Shaw trying to persuade his experienced starter to stay even though his job is in danger of being nabbed by electric freshman Keller Chryst. Call it an insurance play by Shaw. It's not the wildest theory I've ever seen.

But apply logic in another way, and you get no tangible reason why Hogan would want to depart.

The offense should return at least four offensive linemen, the three best running backs, a stable of tight ends and two of the top three wideouts. And why does he want to go to a totally new program and play in a totally new offense when he's already assured of being the starter for next season?

He wants to go to Texas or Michigan.... for what? The chance to play for teams that were worse than Stanford this year?

That's the prevailing logic from the informed Stanford point of view.

@BarkingCarnival wishful thinking. Stanford returns everyone on offense (if Peat comes back) from the bowl/UCLA games. They're loaded on O

— Todd Husak (@ToddHusak) January 5, 2015

I really, really don't see Hogan as a grad transfer candidate. Shaw's already said he's the starter if he returns for 2015

— Rule of Tree (@RuleofTree) January 5, 2015

So could Kevin Hogan transfer? It seems like fan-fiction from QB-starved fanbases to me at this point - but perhaps these rumblings are for a reason indeed.